New Painting - Day's End on Fritz Cove

The PAINTING, Day's End on Fritz Cove, based on original photograph.

When we were preparing for our 2003 move from Juneau to Albuquerque, we sold our condo very quickly, moved into a rental for a few months, and then, a week or so before we actually sailed south on one of the Alaska ferries, we moved out of the apartment. Our friends, Jim and Carolyn Cameron, generously invited us to stay with them, in their beautiful water-side home on Fritz Cove Road, until our departure date.

We'll never forget their kindness and hospitality. This painting is a "slice" out of a wider panorama photo that I took during our stay there. I plan to send it to Carolyn. (Sadly, Jim has since passed away.) 

I signed this painting without the final approval of my art teacher. She was really unhappy with the stringy moss hanging down on the left side of the painting. She says it detracts from the whole. But I couldn't figure any way to eliminate it, without repainting the entire sky . . . and I'm not going to do that. Besides, it was something that really appealed to me about the original photo, which I've also posted, below. (Don't compare too closely . . . I took a lot of liberties.)

The wider-view PHOTO taken from the Cameron's home on Fritz Cove.

Losing a Tooth - In More Ways than One

While Dan and Chris were out of town, working a car race, I stayed with Kelsey and the kids. It was a fun weekend.

We ate out, at Olive Garden, on Saturday evening. Robert had a very loose front tooth - his FIRST ever - and kept accidentally bumping it with his fork, which hurt. But he suffered through dinner, and then enjoyed working off some energy at a nearby park.

Clara is growing up so fast!

By the time we got home, it was nearly time for showers and bed.

Sunday morning arrived, and Robert came down to breakfast, wiggling his tooth. Kelsey checked it and found it was REALLY loose, and bleeding a little bit. She declared it "ready to come out," but neither Kelsey nor I wanted to be the tooth-puller. So Robert decided he could do it himself. Kelsey gave him a little piece of paper towel, which he folded over the tooth and PRESTO! He pulled it out in one try. Losing one's first tooth is definitely a right of passage.

So, he set the tooth down on the table, on top of a scrap of paper towel. A few minutes later, Kelsey came along to pick up the breakfast dishes. After Robert brushed his teeth (which was a little difficult for him, considering the new tender spot on his gums), he came back downstairs. "Where's my tooth?" he hollered. Kelsey looked a little confused, then realized what she had done. In picking up the breakfast things, she had inadvertently tossed out that teensy tooth, along with the napkins, paper towels and leftover oatmeal. 

It was Sunday morning, so we were all trying to get ready for church, but everything came to a screeching halt while Kelsey and I dug through the trash and methodically smushed through the clumps of oatmeal. I have to agree with Kelsey, who commented on how much a teensy little tooth looks like pieces of cooked oats! Amazingly, Kelsey found that tiny tooth, glued to the side of the trash bag with oatmeal. She carefully washed it and put it into a snack-sized zip-lock baggie for safe-keeping.

The rest of Sunday was very nice. Robert got to show off his missing tooth to all of his Bible class friends and teachers. Clara and I started a little photography "contest." We are both taking pictures of circles - anything that is in a circle shape.

We're going to share our circle pictures with each other the next time we're together. Clara seems to be winning this contest, so far, as she is taking pictures of EVERYTHING shaped like a circle. I told her I was going to be a bit selective about what circles I chose. But being selective isn't going to win, I fear. Here are a few circles that I've shot, so far.

That afternoon Dan came home from the race. Chris had to stay longer, so, at dinner time, we all met up at a Mexican restaurant for dinner. Of course, Robert could hardly wait to show his Daddy what had transpired while he was away.

Dan drove on home after dinner, but I spent one more night there. I always enjoy being there when the kids are getting ready for bed on a school night - all the rituals and rules, which include Kelsey reading out of a chapter book to the kids. This time she was reading from The Little Prince. 

After story time the kids were off to bed. But it wasn't an ordinary school night for Robert. After all, he'd lost his very first tooth, and he was excited about the night time visit of the Tooth Fairy.  Kelsey, not wanting him to have expectations that were too high, asked him how much he thought the Tooth Fairy would bring. "Maybe a quarter," he answered, so Kelsey thought the Tooth Fairy was safe with the EIGHT quarters she was planning to bring him. 

Morning came. Kelsey went in to wake Robert up for school. When he opened his eyes, Kelsey said, "I wonder if the Tooth Fairy came?" Robert, still groggy from sleep, surprised her with his answer: "Yes. She came. I already looked." "Really?!" responded Kelsey, somewhat skeptically, since he doesn't normally wake during the night. "Yes. She left me $25 . . . two $10s, two $2s, and one $1." Obviously, he'd had a very detailed - and mathematically complex - dream. Then he looked in the tooth-hiding place, and found the eight quarters . . . and broke into tears. "Someone took my money! There was $25 there . . . two $10s, two $2s, and one $1!" It took quite a while for Kelsey to convince him that this bonanza he had "seen" had only been a dream. But in the end, he was happy with his eight quarters, and got on with getting ready for school.